Thomas Nagel: What does it all mean?
As a very short introduction to philosophy, this is a short book around a hundred pages with fairly large text and fractionally under A5 in physical size. Nagel runs through a light hearted yet informative range of core issues fundamental to philosophy, his humour coming through and allowing an easier read than some of the other short introduction style texts for the area. I would consider that most people should be able to work their way through the book with relative ease as Nagel tends to be clear, concise and, importantly, brief while discussing each topic while only occasionally providing a more in depth discussion where necessary.
The core areas he covers in order are How do we know anything?, Other minds, The Mind-body problem, The meaning of words, Free will, Right and wrong, Justice, Death and finally The meaning of life. It would be far too easy to make (bad) jokes at this point, but I shall display unusual restraint. Don’t think I’m going to be making a habit of it.
The book, originally made available in 1987, may be approaching twenty years old now and the content may not be presented in as fresh a format as more recent works from the likes of Blackburn, but the topics covered are timeless and leave the book worthy of reading. Let’s face it, it’s only going to take you a day or two to work through it if you don’t have a lazy Sunday afternoon to sit with it.
There is perhaps one point Nagel makes in his chapter on Death which I find myself disagreeing with. Whether this is through my lack of understanding or simply a different point of view is another matter. Nagel states:
“Of course you can’t conceive of your own non-existence from the inside. You can’t conceive of what it would be like to be totally annihilated, because there’s nothing it would be like, from the inside.”
Skipping a bit, he goes on to say:
“you just have to think of yourself from the outside, having been knocked out, or in a deep sleep.”
This is where my problem comes from. I go to sleep every day and, so far, always wake up a few hours later. I have no recollection of this period besides a short period at either end which is usually somewhat fuzzy in recollection. In effect, for this period of time, I , as a person, do not exist. While there will be many arguments against that simple statement, I do believe I can use it to show that I certainly do have the ability to conceive my own non-existence from the inside, as I experience this daily.
As part of writing a review, I always make an effort to contact a relevant person to give them the chance to correct any factual errors, ensure they’re happy with any quotes or graphics I’ve chosen to use and because I simply believe it’s polite to do so. Thomas, if you have read this and don’t dismiss me as a muppet outright, I would be very interested to hear your thoughts on my disagreement above. The same invitation is extended to anyone bored enough to contact me.
In summary, a good and short introduction to some basic philosophy, well worth reading and cheap enough not to be too upsetting if it doesn’t interest you.